Germany’s environment minister has said the country will use its upcoming presidency of the European Union to steer the bloc towards a climate-friendly economic recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We always have to keep the big picture in mind. Europe wants to become the first greenhouse gas-neutral continent by 2050,” German Environment Minister Svenja Schulze said ahead of a meeting of EU environment ministers.
“This is the most crucial thing that we can do for future generations,” Ms Schulze added.
Reuters Newsagency reports Germany takes over the rotating EU presidency on July 1 and will chair meetings of EU ministers until the end of the year.
Tough talks on how to make the EU climate neutral by 2050 are a major challenge for Germany’s six-month EU Council presidency in the second half of 2020.
The negotiations for a European economic recovery program will be a first test of its role as moderator.
Chancellor Angela Merkel has said the package should largely be oriented towards climate action and digitalisation.
The European Commission has said spending from its proposed €750 billion coronavirus recovery fund must “do no harm” to the bloc’s green goals.
It has earmarked funding for electric vehicles and low-carbon hydrogen fuel, areas also in line for support from Germany’s national stimulus package.
Ms Schulze called the EC proposal a “good basis” for the EU’s economic recovery, which she said must be “socially fair and ecologically sound”.
She said priorities during Germany’s presidency would be agreeing an EU biodiversity strategy, a law to make long-term emissions targets legally binding, and increasing the bloc’s 2030 climate target to a 50 or 55 per cent emissions reduction against 1990 levels.
Talks about increasing the bloc’s 2030 climate target face hurdles, but have to be finalised before the year is out.
Germany supports the EC’s proposal to increase the target to 50 to 55 per cent and the focus of talks will be on “if” rather than “how” to raise ambitions
Reuters reports tough talks lie ahead as Bulgaria said on Tuesday it could not achieve a higher 2030 climate goal, while Slovenia called the EC’s biodiversity plan to protect 30 per cent of EU land “rather impossible”.
The EU had hoped to coax China, the world’s biggest emitter, into raising its emissions-cutting ambitions at a joint summit in Leipzig in September, ahead of a crucial United Nations climate summit in November.
However, with both events delayed, the EU’s immediate climate focus has shifted to rebuilding its virus-battered economy without compromising its green goals.
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